Blurb: Terrance Altham doesn’t know why he’s been arrested. He’s committed no crime and the cops aren’t talking. Sadly, the man sharing his holding cell talks too much. Known only as Ghost, he is a young grifter, apparently familiar enough with this police station to convince Terrance a break out is possible, and pushy enough to leave Terrance no choice but to follow Ghost into the underbelly of New York City.

Terrified by the unjust imprisonment and the possibility of a life behind bars, Terrance searches for proof of his innocence while Ghost seeks the elusive Butterfly King. But neither man seems in control of the weekend’s direction and the consequences of missteps are life-changing. As Ghost’s manipulations come to an explosive head, each man must decide amid danger and street violence what kind of man will triumph, lost or found?

Narrator Vin Vanbly (a.k.a Ghost) returns in the most revealing King Weekend yet, where he faces the dark side of his dangerous manipulations, and learns mistakes can be deadly. Vin must confront sinister dealings from his past—and a future promising disaster—as he waltzes Terrance across Manhattan in spring, searching for the elusive and charismatic, Butterfly King.

Review:

How long did I sit staring at my screen trying to start my review? It was a very long time, because I had so many feels, so many thoughts, and I wanted to talk about all of them but knew I couldn’t actually do that in my review. I decided to start with this; does The Butterfly King fall into any particular tropes? Nope! Is this story in any way a traditional story? Not at all! Which puts this series in a class all by itself. It’s a journey. It’s a “life” ride with ups and downs, so buckle up, hold on and embrace it.

The Butterfly King is the third book and actually takes place a couple of years before King Perry and King Mai. This may sound odd, but the journey is about Vin Vanbly, the Kingmaker, and not necessarily about the Kings themselves, although they play a key role. In King Perry (book one), we meet Vin and all the awesomeness that he is, a confident Kingmaker. Then book two, King Mai, takes place before King Perry, and Vin is still awesome but not the completely confident Kingmaker we met during King Perry’s story. And now we have The Butterfly King. This book is a game changer in my opinion.

I could go on and on about the amazing writing style and craftsmanship of words on paper that this author creates, but I won’t. You will need to trust me when I say the writing is tight, the pacing is flawless, the world building is unique, and the multi-dimensional characters are amazingly real, funny, frustrating, heart wrenching and loveable.

The opening chapters are not for the faint of heart. Dark sewers and rats. Not just any ole rats. These are NYC rats! And this is where we meet Terrance Altham. A nice, calm, responsible man who always does the right thing. That is until he meets Vin Vanbly, aka Ghost. Terrance’s journey to Kingship is just as impressive as King Perry and King Mai. However, this one stands out from the rest. It’s one of Vin’s earlier Kingings, and sadly, you can tell how unsure Vin is about many aspects of this kingship. He questions himself constantly, he doubts his decisions, and he lacks confidence in this plan. It’s very sad to witness. I wanted to hug Vin and cuddle him and love him. I didn’t have those feelings about Vin in the prior books, which, in reality, did not take place until after Terrance Altham’s kinging. This chronological order of the books really shows the growth of Vin, and it’s a story woven perfectly by the author. I don’t go into details with my reviews, but racism is part of the storyline, as well as how it affects Terrance Altham’s daily life. There were many parts of this story that had me in tears, as I always found myself a fairly open-minded person, but even I realized a few things about myself while reading Terrance’s point of view, and for that I will be forever grateful to this author.

How badly do I want book four? You can probably guess, but I also can’t possibly read book four anytime soon (even if it was available right now). I am still digesting The Butterfly King. I want to give this book its proper due. It deserves to be cherished for a while, and I need time to get a grip with all that happened with Vin and how it ended. I also need time to try and figure out the mystery that Edmond Manning has created. 😛 There is more happening here. I feel an undercurrent, something else floating around the Lost and Found universe, and it’s in my nature to figure things out.

So as I wait for book four, I will use my time wisely and revisit all my highlighted notes from The Butterfly King, and maybe, just maybe, get a small glimpse into the unique mind of Edmond Manning. Until then, please run, not walk, to your nearest bookstore or web browser and buy The Butterfly King. 😀

Overall Impression: It was amazing!

*I received a copy of this book from the author in return for a fair and honest review.*